After 67 days without rugby league, the NRL returned and it quickly became a source of celebration for Eels fans after their side ran out 34-6 winners over the Brisbane Broncos at Suncorp Stadium.
Much of the talk leading into the match centred on how the Eels would deal with the pressure of being Premiership favourites as well as a mid-season change to the rules and the fact players had been quarantined for over a month without organised training.
The Eels seemed to pick up where they left off round two, steamrolling their way down the field courtesy of the new six again rule before the impressive Marata Niukore was too big, too strong and too fast for a tired Brisbane defensive line and he crashed over to the right of the uprights.
The Broncos though fought their way back into the contest with halfback Brodie Croft slicing through on Parramatta's right edge and out-pacing Clint Gutherson to the line. Jamayne Isaako's sideline conversion brought the scores level at 6-6.
For much of the half the sides traded possession. Errors were aplenty as each side looked to move the ball, although Brisbane's mistakes became more costly when Maika Sivo caught the ball close to the line and in only a metre of space managed to launch himself into the corner, handing the Eels a 12-6 lead.
There were some concerns from Eels coach Brad Arthur at half time who said his time was not defending well enough and they were affording Brisbane too many opportunities.
Parramatta came out a seemingly more committed side in the second half, piling on four tries, running out easy winners in the end.
Eels prop Junior Paulo played a powerful game. His 55 minutes saw him charge for 170 metres from 17 runs, none of those coming from kick returns. His ball-playing skills were also on show, providing the final pass for Clint Gutherson's second half try.
Marata Niukore may only be filling in for Nathan Brown at lock but he's thrown his name into calculations for the starting side when the Eels enforcer returns. His powerful runs through the middle coupled with late footwork and bruising defence saw him be a handful for Brisbane defenders all night.
Also in the engine room, Reagan Campbell-Gillard got through a mountain of work in his 55 minutes with 18 runs for 204 metres while bench prop Kane Evans provided 16 runs and 185 metres in his 40 minutes.
A special mention also goes to edge backrowers Shaun Lane and Ryan Matterson who were deadly on their respective edges with Lane netting himself a try and Matterson a try assist.
For Eels fans they would have been impressed with the performances of Mitchell Moses and Dylan Brown who both remained calm and composed throughout the match. Brown especially was a handful early on with his direct running causing trouble for the Brisbane defence and Moses' kicking game turned the screws as the game went on.
Reed Mahoney played exceptionally well given he'd only managed two full training sessions since returning from a broken foot suffered in round two.
The match, while hardly a clinical performance from the Eels, sees them start a season 3-0 for the first time since 1993. There will no doubt be sterner tests in the weeks to come, starting with the Manly Sea Eagles next weekend, but for now Parramatta fans can enjoy seeing their team atop the table.
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I was really happy watching that win by the Eels.
The whole starting pack came ready to play and play they did. Running hard from the opening siren, tackling hard, get up in the face of the Broncos attackers and bring deft passing into their game.
While the wingers had an avg night the whole backline worked well as a unit and for the first time in a long time there was threats coming from all over the park in attack.
In defense the eels held their own in the forwards and mostly dominated a Brisbane pack touted by some as the best in the comp. Hass was again the standout for the Broncos but the Eels got him in numbers and mostly kept him under control.
The Eels halves were patient and shared the attacking ball better than Ive seen an Eels pairing in years. At the end of the day, the Broncos couldnt pick out one player to target because the ball would just move and someone else who would threaten.
For me, I loved the 6 again and how it took those penalties out of the game that allows a team to get a breather and reset defense. It meant a SOO speed game with plenty of opportunities for those that control the ball.
Was it perfect? no. But I thought we'd come back rusty after the break and yet here they were looking and playing the fittest Ive seen our team.
Bring on the Eagles next week.
Good write up Super. The Eels have been finishing games well, definitely more 'committed' as you suggest but fitness also a factor.
Don't know what to make of 3-0 being our best start in 27 years...is it that such a outstanding start or have we been that bad for so looong...
Very well-written, Super. There were a lot of positives, and agree we'll be tested in the weeks to come.
Other than Dylan's dangerous running game being used more (to compliment his tremendous defence & clever kicking game), I noticed we seemed far more direct attacking the defence, with crisp passing.
Also, we can get far better. Moses, Waqa, Fergo were under-utilised. I can see Moses' acceleration being deadly with these more open rucks and fractured defensive lines. Both left and right edge combinations are starting to look less clunky.
A smaller point, and maybe it's just me, but we seem to be a happy team, atm. We seemed far more relaxed, before kick off than the Broncos in the sheds, whom appeared somewhat uptight.